In your Sept. 16 edition you published a letter from David Flood asking about interest payments owed by the North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue to the New Jersey State Pension system.

The specifics are found in the audit report of the North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue operations for the year ended Dec. 31, 2012. Item 14 of the notes to financial statements includes the following sentence: “Amounts still owed to the Pension System are $8,967,237.03 which includes interest for late payments for 2010 and 2011 pensions in the amount of $830,259.83.”

These figures are for the year ended Dec. 31, 2011. Allowing for the continued accrual of interest to date makes the figure approximately $1,000,000.00 now. The audit is a public record available through OPRA from the North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue.

North Bergen has made every single mandated payment to NHRFR on time and in full and we refuse to be held responsible for a penny of these interest payments.